Skibidi Gyatt: What makes a meme word stick?

This thesis is an investigation into so-called ‘meme words’ such as skibidi, blorbo, and yeet, whose origins can be traced back to specific internet memes and were spread into mainstream language through social media. The thesis questions whether these neologisms (novel words or phrases) were formed and spread through the same processes as those that do not have a connection to the internet. Nine such neologisms were selected for the study, and a pilot study was conducted in the form of a survey to assess their relative ‘success’ (i.e., their spread and usage). Using search frequency data from Google Trends, the usage over time of each selected neologism was examined and compared to the larger sample. Additionally, this thesis investigates the potential role of sound symbolism, lexical meaning, and memes in the spread and long-term success of these neologisms. The results indicate that sound symbolism likely has a significant role in the success of novel internet words, and that...Show moreThis thesis is an investigation into so-called ‘meme words’ such as skibidi, blorbo, and yeet, whose origins can be traced back to specific internet memes and were spread into mainstream language through social media. The thesis questions whether these neologisms (novel words or phrases) were formed and spread through the same processes as those that do not have a connection to the internet. Nine such neologisms were selected for the study, and a pilot study was conducted in the form of a survey to assess their relative ‘success’ (i.e., their spread and usage). Using search frequency data from Google Trends, the usage over time of each selected neologism was examined and compared to the larger sample. Additionally, this thesis investigates the potential role of sound symbolism, lexical meaning, and memes in the spread and long-term success of these neologisms. The results indicate that sound symbolism likely has a significant role in the success of novel internet words, and that lexical meaning, rate of spread, and meme association are also relevant factors. It is noted that due to the small sample size, these results can only be used as indications. It is recommended that further studies should be conducted with larger samples to reach more definitive conclusions.Show less

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Skibidi Gyatt: What makes a meme word stick?